10 Positive Advantages of Recycling Initiatives

You probably wondering why is there a focus on recycling. Recycling is a necessity today for homeowners, business and commercial organizations across the world. Reducing the waste is an important step towards protecting our environment.

Recycling reduces the negative environmental impact on our landfills. The key to achieving this goal is to use an effective recycling process. The collection methods used will encourage everyday recycling practices and even increase the rates of recycling.

There are many materials that can be recycled such as paper, cardboard, plastics, glass, tin cans, wood, metals, electronics, fabrics and soil. Recycling has definitely increased in momentum, but our world still has to increase the rate of recycling to compensate the amount of waste disposed every day. Besides, accumulation of waste is not a single nation problem, but a global issue.

Here are the advantages for recycling:

Advantage #1: Lower costs

Recycling makes financial sense as homeowners and organizations start to use recycled materials. The cost of using recycled materials is much less than the cost of creating brand new ones. This process will help to reduce waste stored on landfill sites and prevent environment damages.

Advantage #2: Reduce pollution

Saving the environment is one of the biggest advantages of recycling. If materials are not recycled, they have to be dumped at a location until they decompose. The degradation rates vary for different materials. Aluminum cans take over 250 years to decompose. Plastic can take over 1000 years to decompose at landfills which is why it makes sense to recycle.

Imagine the amount of waste accumulated if the decomposed rates take a long time. It is a major concern for our world and future if waste is continuously dumped at landfill sites.

Advantage #3: Save energy

Conserving energy is another one of the advantages of recycling. A lot of energy is needed to process raw materials such as wood, oil and ore to make them usable products such as paper, plastic and metal. Recycling saves energy as the products that are being recycled require less processing to be turned into usable materials. This is because recycling materials have already been refined and processed once, making the second process, less energy-intensive than the first.

Utilizing less energy conserves natural resources and reduces pollutions. Companies that utilize recycled aluminum can save up to 95% energy during production compared to sourcing raw materials.

Advantage #4: Contribute to global warming

Recycling can fight global warming. As you know, global warming is a big topic these days. The world leaders are trying to find ways to reduce global warming. Additionally, waste dumped at landfills that are combusted, release huge volumes of carbon dioxide into the air, which can contribute to the problem of global warming. Apart from the waste, less energy consumed means that less greenhouse gases are emitted. Greenhouse gases accumulate and trap heat in the atmosphere fueling global warming and climate threats.

Advantage #5: Protects the environment

Landfill sites storing huge amounts of waste can impact our environment. Recycling reduces the need for dumping waste. It reduces the need to extract, refine and process raw materials as well which can create air and water pollution. Recycling is crucial even if it is the smallest step towards protecting the environment.

Advantage #6: Conserves natural resources

Manufacturing requires raw materials. Many of these materials are non-renewable. Fossil fuel and metal ore are limited in resources. At the current rate of extraction, the world can face a shortage in the long run. It is vital to save resources for our future generation.

Recycling can help to conserve these natural resources such as wood, fossil fuels and water. It decreases resource depletion. It additionally, reduces the ecosystem destruction of mining, drilling and deforestation.

Advantage #7: Protects animals and wildlife

Today forests are disappearing which leaves no room for wildlife animals. Our oceans are being polluted with plastic bottles and other waste, killing our sea species. There have been many incidents reported on the unfortunate encounters between wildlife and waste items. The best way to prevent this is to be conscious on how you dispose your waste. Always choose reusable options instead of disposable products.

Advantage #8: Creates jobs

With recycling, the world offers more jobs and less pollution. Recycling has so many advantages such as saving energy, reducing landfill waste and even creating many jobs. It is helping our economy grow. There are many companies that offer recycling products in Canada.

Advantage #9: Saves water

Raw materials processing requires tons of water, whereas recycling can conserve water. You can conserve water by buying recycled items.

Advantage #10: Reduces Greenhouse Gases

Recycling can reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and allows for the development of more environmentally friendly products. The vast supply of low cost recyclables through local collection programs is a big contributor to low and even zero emissions.